My Million Dollar Mom Film Screening and Dementia Awareness Event at Pennsylvania State Capitol Building - May 13, 2019

Legislators, Staff, and the Public to Participate

May 3, 2019

(Horsham, PA) My Million Dollar Mom, an award-winning film shot in the Philadelphia area and based on Ross Schriftman's book by the same name, will be screened at the State Capitol on Monday, May 13, 2019 with a discussion about dementia and care giving to follow. The 32 minute film and discussion will be held in the Capital Media Center from 10:30 am to 11:45 am.
The discussion after the screening will be led by Ross Schriftman, the film's screenwriter and
producer and Kevin Jameson, Volunteer President, Dementia Society of America. Mr. Jameson
will talk about the Society's Operation Keepsafe, and the MyIDentification Kit, soon to be
available at no-cost for at-risk individuals across the Commonwealth. For more information
contact: www.dementiasociety.org.

On the same day, Representative Tom Murt of Montgomery County, Chair of the Pennsylvania House Aging and Older Adult Services Committee, will be speaking about House Resolution 321 which commemorates May as Dementia Awareness Month in the Commonwealth. A rally will take place in the East Wing Rotunda from 11:45 am to 12:45 pm with Representative Murt and members of the Committee participating.

"It is an honor to assist the General Assembly in its work in raising awareness about the needs of those Pennsylvanians living with Dementia and their families by showing my film and holding a public discussion. Thank you to Representative Murt, his staff and the members of the House Aging and Older Adult Services Committee for their help in making this event happen," said Schriftman.

"My film was produced to honor the memory of my dear mother Shirley, a dynamic woman who died from Alzheimer's, a form of dementia," said Schriftman. "I am so grateful to our wonderful cast, crew, production and marketing teams and supporters for making this film possible."

The film, directed by Kevin Hackenberg, stars veteran film and television actors Pete Postiglione and Susan Moses and was inspired by real events in Schriftman's life. Moses portrays an aging mom diagnosed with Alzheimer's and Postiglione portrays her son Ross, who steps forward to
care for her. At the same time, he is offered a last-chance opportunity to run for Congress. He must decide between his life-long dream and his mom's wishes to remain in her home under his care. The life lesson of caring for one another through Tikkun Olam (the Hebrew expression for repairing the world) is the theme of the film.

With the help of the Dementia Society of America and a 12-member multi-discipline educational advisory group, Schriftman created a "Presentation-in-a-Box" program for community events and continuing education initiatives utilizing the film and discussion materials.
The goals of this program are to raise awareness about dementia, encourage people to plan for long term care needs and to give courage and hope to those living with dementia and their loved ones who care for them. More information about these programs is available by clicking here.